Trailer Girl | 1

eighteen

"No. Now can we please talk about something else?"

"Touchy subject." Miller mutters, and Jason laughs when she chucks a pillow that hits his head.

"What's for breakfast?" Letty asks as she gets up and joins their search.

The front door opens then, and the three teenagers look over to see Letty's dad making his way in with two pizzas in his hand. They watch wordlessly as he walks over and sets the boxes on the table before starting for his bed.

"Which one is yours?" The brunette asks as she and Miller both open up a box. There's one that's just pepperoni and one that's pepperoni and sausage — her favorite and Miller's.

"I already ate. Those are for you three." He tells the teenagers. "Dig in."

A wide smile spreads across her face as she reaches for a slice of the pepperoni, and then Miller hands her a paper plate. "Thanks, Daddy." She says, and her father stops in his tracks to look over at her. The brunette's lost in her own little world as she takes a bite, and the boys exchange an amused look as she does a little happy dance.

"You're welcome, pumpkin." He says, and she looks over at him, surprised by his use of his old nickname for her. She swallows her bite of pizza and smiles at him, then he heads to bed.

Jason looks from them to Miller, and the younger boy shakes his head. The blond is clearly annoyed by the reaction Letty had to this entire situation, but there's nothing that he can say or do about any of it. She clings to those little moments, and he thinks it warps her perception of the reality that they live in every day.

What Miller doesn't know — those moments were the only thing that made the other moments survivable before he started living with her.

—

Letty's on a date with Danny at his house, and they're watching a movie in his living room. She hears the phone ring, and he sighs as he reluctantly gets up to answer it. He then hands it to her.

"Who is it?" The brunette asks, confused.

"Some kid named Shawn." He tells her, and she holds the phone to her ear.

"Hey, Shawnie, is everything okay?"

"Yeah, but we're headed to the impound lot because Eric got his dad's car towed, and I thought you'd want to watch Feeny bust him." The younger boy tells her.

"As amusing as that sounds, I'm kinda busy at the—" She starts, but then the front door opens.

Danny's parents walk in, and he sighs as he looks over at them. "Well, there goes our date." The teenage boy mutters. "I guess I'll give you a ride to wherever Shawn is." He tells her, so she in turn tells Shawn that she'll be there soon.

Letty gets to the impound lot, and Shawn looks at her. He smiles when he sees the brunette. "So, what'd I miss?" She asks him; Danny dropped her off and then left.

"Eric doesn't have a license and he was driving his dad's car anyway." He tells her, and Feeny looks at Eric.

"Is it just me or is he unusually intimating right now?" Letty asks, and then ducks down behind her younger brother when Feeney looks at her. "Well, I didn't do anything wrong." She mumbles, and Shawn starts laughing at her.

They go back to the Matthews' house, and the two younger boys run for the couch. Eric still looks ashamed and embarrassed, and Jason seems to find the whole situation funny. He's never really cared about getting into trouble. Generally, he lives for it.

"Missy." Feeny says, and Morgan looks at him. "Brush your teeth and go to bed." He tells her.

"Come on, kiddo. I'll help you." Letty says, and the tiny blonde takes her hand and drags the older girl up the stairs with her.

Morgan sits on the counter and watches as Letty gets her toothbrush ready for her. "Where have you been, Scarlett? I've missed you." She says, and the brunette looks at her.

"Aw, I've missed you too, kiddo." She tells her.

"How come you don't come over anymore?"

"Well... Eric's​ mad at me, and I don't think he wants to see me much right now."

"Then why'd you come to help?" She asks.

"I wasn't exactly helping tonight. I just...wanted to make sure that everyone was alright." Letty tells her. "I'm always gonna make sure that you're all okay."

"Like when I broke the window?"

The older girl nods. "Exactly like that. I'll always be here when you need me, I promise."

"When are you and Eric going to be friends again?"

"I wish I knew, but I don't think it's that simple."

"Why not?" She asks, and Letty sighs.

"I'd say you'll understand when you're older, but I'm not entirely sure that I even understand it all. Things can get a little confusing when feelings are involved."

"Do you like him?"

Letty pauses for a second and then takes a deep breath. "Brush your teeth, Morgan." She tells her, and the little blonde does as she's told.

Once she's done, she walks out of the bathroom. "Goodnight, Scarlett. Goodnight, Eric." She says as she leaves.

"Night, kiddo." Letty says.

"Goodnight, Weasel." The older boy says, and his best friend looks at him through the open bathroom door; he's sitting on his bed.

"How long have you been in here?" She asks, hesitantly stepping into his room.

"Long enough to hear most of your conversation with Morgan." He tells her, and she nods. "Why can you talk to my kid sister, but you can't talk to me?"

"What am I supposed to say, Eric? You haven't talked to me in a month."

"You haven't even tried." He argues.

"I'm sorry, I'll stand outside your window with a boom box next time." She mumbles sarcastically.

"It's not like I'm the only one to blame for how messed up things have been between us. You've been dating Danny for the last month." He says as he gets to his feet.

"How can you be mad at me for that?" She questions. "You are the one who told me to go out with him in the first place. And besides, you and Jason were out on a double date tonight before your dad's car got towed." She reminds him.

"Who knows how different tonight could've been if we'd finished our conversation that day in the backyard."

"I left because Shawn—" The brunette shakes her head. "No. You know what, I'm not defending my actions. I know that I didn't do anything wrong."

"What about before when we were in here? You wouldn't talk then either."

"And I'm not talking about this now." She turns around and walks out of his bedroom.

"Letty!" He calls after her, but she ignores him and keeps walking. "Come​ on!"

She reaches the living room and walks right past his parents and Mr. Feeny. The brunette leaves their house to go back to her trailer, where she'll probably get in trouble for being out this late again. Just like she and Miller got in trouble the night that they were cleaning up after Shawn told her that Morgan was missing.